Detroit Lions placekicker Havard Rugland, left, of Norway, and Sam Martin practice ball placement during the NFL football rookie minicamp in Allen Park, Mich., Saturday, May 11, 2013. Rugland, whose trick-shot video turned him into an Internet sensation, is all business now. The Lions signed him a month ago, and now his focus is on adapting to a new sport and trying to make the team. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

It easy to see exactly how the Detroit Lions punted last season. Just look at the very bottom of the NFL's team punting statistics.

Coming off a 4-12 season, the Lions have some issues and obviously, punting is one of them.

The Lions started the 2012 season with punter Ben Graham and then when he was injured, they brought back Nick Harris who had been the Lion's punter and holder for eight seasons, the last in 2010.

As a team, the gross punting average was 41.4 yards which was dead last in the NFL. In comparison the New Orleans Saints averaged 50.1 yards

Advertisement

The Lions net punting average was 37.1 yards, again the bottom of the barrel. Number 32 of 32.

To help rectify the situation the Lions drafted Sam Martin out of Appalachian State in the fifth round and signed free agent Blake Clingan out of Central Florida. Both participated in rookie minicamp last weekend.

Coach Jim Schwartz had two words to say when asked where he is looking to upgrade the punting game this year: "Every part."

"We were near the bottom in just about every part, from gross to you name it, net and we need to be just all around better as a punt team,'' Schwartz said. "We need to improve the consistency of what they have to do. It's not just about putting a good punt in practice, it's about having the consistency to do it time and time again.''

As if scripted, while Schwartz was talking about punting consistency after one of the rookie minicamp sessions, the punters were on the field working. One punt (by Martin) hit a light fixture high above the indoor field. The next punt (by Clingan) shanked off the side of his foot.

That's not exactly the consistency Schwartz seeks.

"Also directional punt, that's a big thing we didn't do a very good job of directional punt last year,'' Schwartz said. " With the quality of returners in the NFL, you can't defend the whole field. You have to eliminate part of the field with the direction of your kicker. That only works if you can trust the punter to be able to punt to that window.''

The coach said that was a problem last season when too many times Graham/Harris were supposed to punt to a window and didn't. Then that ball was somewhere they weren't planning on.

"We had difficulty covering it and we paid the price for it a couple times,'' Schwartz said.

Martin was a place kicker until the end of his redshirt freshman year at Appalachian State. The punter was going to graduate so he saw an opening and went for it. Martin said it took a couple of years to get comfortable and confident while punting.

The Lions had worked him out and obviously liked him enough to take him in the fifth round.

Clingan got caught in the shuffle out of the 2011 NFL lockout when he got out of Central Florida in 2010. He hasn't played for two seasons.